I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy from the Publisher. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Trouble in Summer Valley
by Susan Y. Tanner
Series: Trouble Cat Mysteries #4
Series Rating:
Published by KaliOka Press on October 9, 2017
Genres: Animal Romantic Traditional Mystery
Pages: 266
Format: Kindle
Goodreads
BookBub
Get Your Copy at: Amazon
Also in this series: Familiar Trouble , Trouble in Dixie , Trouble in Tallahassee , Small Town Trouble , Trouble's Wedding Caper, Trouble in Paradise , Trouble Under the Mistletoe, Turning for Trouble, Bone-a-fied Trouble , Trouble in Action, Trouble Most Faire, A Trouble'd Christmas
DIVORCE, BETRAYAL, MURDER – Avery Wilson knew starting over would be hard, but she never expected to be in an all-out war with her ex. What was he planning next? Her goal of equine rehabilitation for wounded veterans on her Alabama horse ranch was slipping from her grasp, and her precious horses were in danger.
Dirks Hanna had what should have been a simple mission – evaluate Summer Valley Ranch for federal funding. But something deadly was happening in Summer Valley. The beautiful – and headstrong – equestrian was targeted for harm with danger in every direction. And, intertwined with that danger, was a multi-faceted black cat who somehow appeared at the scene of every disaster.
Trouble had arrived at the ranch anticipating bitter human emotions to run high, but the black cat finds his paws more than full with murder and two very stubborn humans who refuse to see they are meant for each other.
Trouble is going country…
Trouble in Summer Valley by Susan Y Tanner has the right amount of mystery, suspense and romance, not to mention Trouble and horses make it a brilliant read.
Avery/Ms. Gorgeous
Our female lead is Avery or Ms. Gorgeous as Trouble calls her. She is the owner and operator of the Summer Valley Ranch. I will tell you more about the ranch later. Avery is recently divorced, and when I say recently, I mean at the very beginning of the story. Avery has these grand plans for the ranch and now that her ex, Craig is finally gone things can move forward. Well, that is what you would think.
Avery is beautiful on the inside and the outside. She has such a huge heart and wants to help as many people and horses as she can. I love her compassion and the care that Avery takes with rescue horses. Oh, and what a hard worker, she even has a sound business plan. She is smart, responsible, and slightly vulnerable. The one thing that I think bothered me, not a dislike, is that at times she doesn’t trust her friends completely to take care of the horses. I do understand that they are her responsibility.
Dirks/Mr. Military
Our male lead is Dirks also known to Trouble as Mr. Military. Dirks has been assigned a desk job as he was recently wounded for the second time. Now he is trying to figure out how to do his new position. Dirks seeks Avery out to decide if her facility will be accepted to work with disabled veterans. Well, that is what he says at first.
Dirks still has his military mindset, and he is immediately attracted to Avery. However, he is trying to remain professional with the task that he has been assigned to him. I like the character Dirks; he is strong, physically and mentally, athletic, caring, he is good at investigations and has excellent contacts.
The one thing that I disliked about him was that he didn’t just come out and ask Avery if she did what he was investigating. I know then he wouldn’t know if she was lying or not.
Trouble
Trouble was magnificent. He came to help Avery because she is Tammy Lynn’s friend and Tammy Lynn is worried about her. He is so finicky about food.
Oh, and did you know that cats don’t understand/communicate with horses? Nope, that was not happening.
Mystery
The mystery is wonderful. There is a lot of suspense and some exciting parts. The culprit was sly and very good acting. Thank goodness for Trouble.
Equine Therapy
Summer Valley Ranch takes in rescue horses and then use them for equine therapy. I have seen this once in California, not at the level of Summer Valley Ranch though.
Definition: Equine-assisted psychotherapy, also called equestrian therapy or horse therapy, is a type of experiential mental health treatment that involves a person in therapy interacting with horses. Designed for people of all ages, equine therapy has been shown to treat a wide range of mental health issues, addressing both physical and psychological concerns associated with a diagnosis.
Individuals seeking help typically work with both a psychotherapist who specializes in equine therapy and a horse trainer who is familiar with their therapeutic application—though both roles may be filled by the same person.
(definition from https://www.goodtherapy.org/learn-about-therapy/types/equine-assisted-therapy)
I think this is a wonderful way to connect with autistic children or help wounded veterans learn to deal with their injuries. If you are interested in equine therapy, search Google for ‘equine therapy near me’ or check out https://americanhippotherapyassociation.org/find-a-facility/.
5 Stars for Trouble in Summer Valley by Susan Y. Tanner
My rating Trouble in Summer Valley by Susan Y. Tanner is five stars. I loved this story; it is perfect. Seriously, Trouble, love, mystery, horses, and summer in Alabama.
Have you read any of these books? Well, if you like cats, mystery and romance these books are for you. I highly recommend it. I can’t wait to read the next book Small Town Trouble by Laura Benedict. Check out my reviews of the other Familiar Legacy books throughout the month of March.
Thank you for dropping by! I hope you enjoyed this review of Trouble in Summer Valley by Susan Y. Tanner.
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About Susan Y. Tanner
Susan Yawn Tanner is published in historical romance as Susan Tanner. Her novels, Highland Captive, Captive to A Dream, Exiled Heart, Fire Across Texas and Winds Across Texas as well as A Warm Southern Christmas (part of a Christmas anthology), were all published by Leisure Books in the early ‘90’s.
Writing as Susan Y. Tanner, Ms. Tanner’s latest venture is a ‘series within a series’ of romantic mysteries showcasing one smart feline named Trouble. Because Ms. Tanner is a horse lover as well as a cat lover, her Trouble books all have backstories which feature the world of horses. Published by KaliOka Press, these books are part of the Familiar Legacy series written in concert with some very talented authors. Trouble in Summer Valley was released in 2017, Turning for Trouble in 2018, and Trouble in Action is slated for 2019.
Ms. Tanner is excited that Secret Staircase Books, an imprint of Columbine Publishing Group, has opted to publish Fire Across Texas and Winds Across Texas, as well as A Warm Southern Christmas, in both print and e-book. This is the first time these titles have been available in e-book. They will be released under the name Susan Yawn Tanner.
Ms. Tanner barrel races and writes with equal enthusiasm.
Photo Credit: Deborah Jones-Kuykendall
Reading this book contributed to these challenges:
- 2019 Cloak and Dagger
- 2019 Craving For Cozies Reading Challenge
- 2019 Cruisin' Thru The Cozies Reading Challenge
- 2019 Goodreads Reading Challenge
- 2019 What An Animal Reading Challenge
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